Clutch ventilation



April 3 H. O. scHJoLm 2.198.792

CLUTCH VENTILATION .FiledDec. 17, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Jrmentor 9721115 Q Scigb/zk I W auorhe s Patented-Apr. 30, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT O F- ce CLUTCH viznmsnon Hans o. Sclijolin, Bloomfield Hills, Mich; assignor to Yellow Truck & Coach Manufacturing Company, Pontiac, Micln, a corporation 01' Maine Application December 11,1937, Serial No. 180.291

2 Claims.

This invention relates to clutch ventilation and carburetor supercharging.

An object of the invention is to provide simple and comparatively inexpensive means to prevent 6- the clutch of a motor coach from becoming overheated. It has been designed more particularly for installations having the power plant at the rear end of a large passenger carrying coach.

[ As a related object the invention embodies the idea of providing a modification of the flywheel element of the clutch whereby the air stream used for cooling the clutch may serve to supercharge the carburetor.

As a more specific object theinvention aims to accomplish the major objects by using a current of relatively cool air which is free from ioreign matter.

Other objects and advantages will be under- 50 stood from the following description.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is a view in end oi! a motor coach.

: Figure 2 is a section on line 2--2 of Figure 1.

. Figure 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a view in-elevation, partly broken away, showing the power plant or the coach.

Figure 5 is a view of a motor vehicle coach'in end elevation,- partly broken away to show a modification.

Figure 6 is a view in elevation of the clutch housing of Figure '5, the housing being broken away to show internal structure.

Figure 7 is a section on line 'i of Figure, 6.

Referring to the drawings, numeral; 5 is;

to designate a passenger vehicle ofthe'kind'i ferred to mounted on wheel power plant represented as a whole by numeral 13. The power plant is placed at the rear end of the vehicle and is located in a space II separated by walls such as 13 from the passenger compartment IS. The power plant need not be described in detail, it being merely necessary to 3 state that it includes an engine I! and Y associated with the flywheel l3 of the engine.

Theflywheel l3 carrying with it a cover 23, is

enclosed within a housing 2|. As is well-known such a clutch is subject to frictionally developed heat as the driving and driven members engage.

I Some provision for the dissipation of this heat perspective of the rear is very desirable and may benecessary in the case of large buses. It has been proposed to associate with the clutch a scoop of some form to gather in air and direct it against the flywheel. Such me I and drivenbya clutch air coming from the outside of thebus in the vicinity of the wheels is very likely to be dusty and since it is drawn through the power compartment by the engine driven fan it becomes heated so that its cooling efliciency is greatly diminished.

The present invention aims to overcome the above defects and to provide cooler and cleaner ,air for the purpose of clutch ventilation.

In Figure 4 there is shown a flywheel 19 together with a cover 23 and the driven shaft 25 extending therefrom. Numeral 21 is merely illustrative or the lever by which the clutch elements within the cover 23 are released. No novelty is alleged for the clutch structure per se.. As will be seen from Figure 4 the clutch housing J'2l is formed; with a plurality of openings 23 in the plane of the flywheel, these openings being distributed circumferentially. These openings 29 are for the outlet of air. For the admission or air an opening 33 is associated with an inwardly directed funnel-shaped stamping 35. This opening 33 may be the opening usually formed in a clutch housing and constituting an inspection opening. Over it is usually placed and secured aclosure member. It will be appreciated that if the air entering at 33 passed through the hot engine compartment 1 I it would be hot and dusty, the air being drawn in from the outside through the openings of the radiator cover 50 by the engine fan not shown. To'obtain cooler air and cleaner air, resort is had to the passenger coman intake at the front or top of is customary, the coach is-formed which together with partment or to the vehicle. As

top panel through which the windows 52 may be reciprocated. If air is taken from the passenger compartment l5 it is thus admitted through the slot 4i space 31. These motor coaches are also built with corner posts enclosing a space 43 as is shown by Figure 3. The space 43 within the corner post (formed by plates 45 and 45') at its upper end is in communication with the space 31. At the bottom of the corner post is a closure plate provided withan opening 41. A flexible tube 49 is provided with end fittings 5i and 53. Fitting 5| is secured over the opening 31 and fitting 53 is secured over the opening 33 as will be seen by reference to Figure 1. The rotary movement of the flywheel drives air out through openings 23 and draws it from the passenger compartment through slot 1 I, the spaces 31 and 43 and through 55 to the longitudinal the flexible conduit and into the housing 2|. Since the air comes from the passenger compartment it is cooler than would be the case were it taken as'heretofore from the. power plant compartment and it is also comparatively free from dust and foreign matter. If the air is taken from a front or top inlet, tube. will be connected with said inlet in any'convenient way.

' Figure 5- shows a modified form wherein the air which enters the clutch housing 'for the, purpose of cooling the clutch is also used to supercharge the carburetor. In Figures 5 to '7 inclusive the vehicle is marked 5, the wheels I and the engine ll, these parts beingthe same-as the corresponding parts shown in Figure 1. The flywheel is marked I9"instead of i9. It is preferably formed with vanes 6|. The air current'enters through'tube 49 and fitting 53, these parts corresponding to the similarly numbered parts in Figure 1. Instead of exhausting through openings 29 in the housing 2| a modified form of housing marked 2| is used in this second form of the invention. This housing 2| is shaped to form a blower housing. It has a discharge: opening at 63 for the air. The housing together with the flywheel constitute a blower serving to deliver air under pressure to the delivery port 63.. The

opening 63 is connected to a tubular pipe 65, the

pipe communicating with an air cleaner 61 which latter is itself connected by a pipe 69 to the carburetor II. It will be seen that air taken from the passenger compartment or other source cools the clutch and serves to supercharge the carburetor. In the event that the supercharger is supplied with air in the way .described it will be deslrable to take the air from the front or top inlet rather than from the passenger compartment.

I claim:

1. A vehicle having a passenger compartment, 9. power plant including aclutch housing, said housing having an inspection opening and circumierentially spaced outlet openings, conduit means including a top panel forming together with the interior trim panel of the vehicle a longitudinal passage,.said passage communicating at one end with the passenger compartment, a hollow corner post, one end of said corner post being in communication with the second end of the passage; an apertured closure plate for the second end of the hollow corner post and a flexible pipe connecting the inspection opening with the aperture of the closure plate.

2. The invention defined by claim 1, said vehicle having reciprocable windows and the communication between thepassenger compartment and the longitudinal passage constituting a slot for the reciprocation of the windows.

1 HANS O. SCHJOLIN. 

